How I knew Rochester would be perfect for me...

Making the college decision is never easy. Which school will fit your personality the best, which town will be the most fun, will you meet a lot of people? I asked myself so many questions before making my decision - but I am here to help you!

Most of you know about the winters in Rochester. I have had a lot of students ask "how bad is it?" and I usually answer by saying that even if there are 3 feet of snow outside, RIT will have some sort of event that has to do with it. Snowboarding, snowshoeing, skiing, ice skating, igloo or statue competitions, and so on! So for those that may hate the cold, you won't hate it here. We also have underground tunnels that connect residence halls so you can wear your pajamas to the dining hall, and tunnels that connect academic buildings. We also have fireplaces around campus and some days free hot chocolate!

You get four beautiful seasons here and all of them bring their own unique trend to the city. With all of the cafes around Rochester, there is always a new flavor for each season or month. My favorites are pumpkin spiced lattes or hot ciders in the fall, and peppermint coffee in the winter. Then I go and drink it by the fireplace in the Student Alumni Union (try not to fall asleep and miss your class)! Each season brings more fun things to do. Everyone goes apple picking and pumpkin picking. Then we carve our pumpkins and make yummy seeds. In the winter we have Bristol, a local skiing mountain (and a few surrounding) and snowmobile trails. In the spring and summer we have beaches, biking trails, and a lot of other festivities.

Coffee shops and cafes are so abundant around Rochester because there are so many college students in the area. There are several other colleges within 15 minutes of RIT, so there are PLENTY of people to meet and a lot of interesting stories to hear.

Festivals and parks are HUGE around Rochester. You can go to Highland Park, the Erie Canal, Ellison Park, Seneca Park Zoo, and on so many trails that connect the whole city. During the summer there are free concerts, the Lilac festival, music festivals, art festivals - so many things to do! (There's also Charlotte Beach nearby - extra bonus!)

Freshmen can have cars on campus! But even if you don't bring or have a car, our bus system is so easy and helpful. There is a free bus that takes you all around campus. There is another free bus that takes you to our local grocery store Wegmans (now #1 in the country! - you'll see why), Target, Walmart, and the surrounding Henrietta area. There is also a bus that takes you downtown for only a dollar. Art students have a bus they take downtown to the local galleries on every first Friday.

The local food of Rochester is delicious. You have to try a garbage plate when you come here, I promise you will fall in love. We also have great NY style pizza, Dinosaur BBQ, and anything from Chinese and Mexican food to Mediterranean and burgers.

I cannot list everything I love about Rochester in one blog post because it would go on forever. But if you're stuck on trying to find the right place, I can personally say that Rochester has so many great features, there's no way you will get bored here.